Centenary Philosophy Department Receives Large Donation from Civil Rights Lawyer
Civil Rights lawyer John Ratcliff made a donation of one million dollars to Centenary’s Philosophy Department at the end of the 2026 Spring semester. Alongside the money, Ratcliff also donated his large collection of philosophy books for the creation of the Thomas Kalford Ratcliff Library across multiple rooms on the second floor of Smith.
The large monetary contribution allows the philosophy department to hire a second philosophy professor. Dr. Chris Ciocchetti has been the sole professor of philosophy at Centenary for some time and he shared his excitement in bringing another professor to campus.
On who they are looking for to fill the position, Dr. Ciocchetti said, “It will be someone with expertise in Black Philosophy or Latin American Philosophy. They will have a much deeper understanding of these areas than I do, and they will bring that knowledge to campus and the local community.” The search committee is composed of Dr. Ciocchetti, Provost Karen Soul, Logan Sledge, Dr. Jeff Hendricks, and Dr. Augustin-Billy.
The Ratcliff Chair is planned to be filled with a professor in expertise in Black Philosophy due to John Ratcliff’s career history. After graduating from the University of Mississippi in 1973, his early career as a lawyer centered around civil rights and the fight for racial justice. During this time he became close with members of the Republic of New Afrika movement such as Virginia and Walter Collins. Both Virginia and Walter Collins were influential in the fight for racial justice, or as simply stated by Ratcliff to this day, “the struggle.” During one particular episode, he helped defend a member of the Black Panther party falsely accused of blowing up a church in Jackson, Mississippi.
Ratcliff received his Bachelors in philosophy at Southwestern at Memphis, now known as Rhodes College, and his Masters in philosophy at the University of Virginia. On his donation to the philosophy department, he jokingly stated “I really wanted to be a world famous philosopher, but I guess this’ll have to do.”
The donation is also a memorial to his son, Thomas Kalford Ratcliff who passed away in 2021. Thomas, like his father, was committed to social justice and fighting for those often left behind.
Currently, John Ratcliff is helping fund a Political Action Committee called A Real Bottom Line. The PAC exists to unelect Speaker Mike Johnson from congress. “We’re trying to show people how to use the Golden Rule politically.” Ratcliff made clear he believed the purpose of learning philosophy is to make change in the world. Ratcliff sees philosophy as a way to impact the world for the better. Paraphrasing Karl Marx, Ratcliff stated, “Heretofore, the object of philosophy has been to understand the world. Hereafter, the object of philosophy is to change it.”
